The mark of how lost our society is can be seen in that almost nobody has ever heard of this book, when its contents should be a topic of discussion in every bar and cafe instead of whatever trivialities are being talked about.

As the gathering crises of the world visit themselves personally upon more and more of us, as it becomes more difficult to insulate ourselves from their effects no matter how wealthy we are, no matter how skillful we are in exercising control over the world, we are collectively "hitting bottom". The effect on our society will be similar to the effect on the individual of a close brush with death.